Pensioners to get better deal after GPSSA ties up with Abu Dhabi Pension Fund

Federal body the General Pension and Social Security Authority (GPSSA) today announced it had reached an agreement with the Abu Dhabi Retirement Pensions and Benefits Fund (ADRPBF) to set up a powerful joint committee to look at coordinating pension details.

The aim is get rid of complications which could result in pensioners losing benefits. H.E. Sultan Al Ghaith, General Manager of the GPSSA, said that as a result of the new initiative: "Citizens will gain rights to every year of labour, instead of missing out on their privileges as a result of job shifts during the course of their careers."

He added: "Looking into a mutual sharing of benefits gives the GPSSA and the Abu Dhabi Pensions Fund a heightened importance to the citizens whom they serve. Some citizens receive their pensions from the Abu Dhabi Pensions Fund and transfer their registration to GPSSA and vice versa. This has caused many complications for pensioners.

"This new agreement will solve these problems by sharing the pensions information between both parties."

Al Ghaith and Mubarak Al Mansouri, General Manager of ADRPBF, decided on the agreement after exploring the many advantages that would flow from a formal system of exchanging pensioners' registration information.

The agreement, one of the first of its kind, is in line with the GPSSA's strategy of pursuing closer links with all authorities and federal organisations in a bid to boost its services. It should also help it meet its objective of trying to provide generous retirement benefits to employees and to boost their social independence.

Al Ghaith added: "An organising committee consisting of members of both establishments has been elected to fashion a digital program that will transfer pensioners' information between GPSSA and the Abu Dhabi Fund. A system of rules and regulations has also been developed to preserve the uniformity in the information sent.

"In addition, a system of assessment and classification was put forward for investment funds, with the aim of benefiting from the experience of both governmental bodies. This has united the insurance concepts applied and correlated the benefits given to citizens."

The agreement was the result of contributions from both sides. Al Ghaith said he is confident that both organizations will benefit from the contribution of the other and from the digital programs that will be used.